U.S. stock futures were on the fence as traders awaited fresh data on the condition of the labor market.
Today's Markets
As of 7:55 a.m. ET, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were up 8 points to 12,365, S&P 500 futures gained 1.4 points to 1,330 and Nasdaq 100 futures were of 0.5 point to 2,325.
A report on the number of individuals applying for unemployment benefits is on tap for 8:30 a.m. ET. Wall Street expects the number of claims to tick lower from 388,000, to 386,000 for the prior week.
Generally, economists see a reading below 400,000 pointing to moderate improvement in the labor markets. Indeed, the widely-watched unemployment rate was at 8.8% in March -- far off the October 2009 peak of 10.1%.
The European Central Bank increased interest rates from a record low 1% to 1.25% as it tries to maintain economic expansion while keeping inflation in check.
"Rising inflation and resilient growth make it more likely this is one step in a normalisation process and will be followed by further hikes,” wrote economists at RBS in a research note.
Since the monetary authority telegraphed its move far in advance, the market response might be muted. The euro recently traded lower by 0.43% against the U.S. dollar.
In energy markets, oil closed at its highest level since September 2008 on Wednesday. Tumult in the Middle East and North Africa coupled with expectations worldwide oil demand will increase as the economic recovery gains traction has pushed prices far higher in recent months.
Light, sweet crude recently edged higher by 18 cents, or 0.14%, $108.96 a barrel. The price of gasoline at the consumer level continues rising. A gallon of regular gas at the pump cost $3.73 on average nationwide, up from $3.52 last month and $2.84 last year.
Gold was recently up $3.20, or 0.22%, to $1,462 a troy ounce.
Corporate News
Rite Aid (RAD) lost 24 cents a share in the fourth quarter, on $6.5 billion in revenue. Profits were in line with analysts' expectations and revenue beat expectations by $120 million.
Foreign Markets
Foreign markets were mixed as traders digested the ECB rate decision and Portugal's call for financial support from the European Union.
The English FTSE 100 was off 0.15% to 6,032, the French CAC 40 gained 0.09% to 4,052 and the German DAX was down 0.11% to 7,207.
In Asia, the Japanese Nikkei 225 edged higher by 0.07% to 9,590 and the Chinese Hang Seng inched lower by 0.01% to 24,281.
